A longstanding industry feud has spilled into the open. Last week, Ohio-based retailer Arhaus filed a lawsuit in federal court against RH, claiming that the California company formerly known as Restoration Hardware had obtained and made use of Arhaus’s trade secrets. The case, first reported by the San Francisco Chronicle , asks the court to compel RH to delete the information and reassign a top executive.

The case is centered on Lisa Chi, Arhaus’s former chief merchandising officer, who decamped for RH in May. In a full-circle twist, Chi had worked for RH as a senior vice president prior to joining Arhaus in 2021. This year, she returned as president and co-chief merchandising and creative officer.

The lawsuit alleges that over the course of her time at Arhaus, Chi would routinely f

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